WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: LilGuyBlastoise
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Economics of an Alchemist ◈
Chapter 22
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Jaeha got up at dawn, loaded the half-asleep Jaeseong into the back seat, and began the day in earnest.
Vrooom!
They stopped by Kimbap Nara on the way.
“Three tuna gimbap and three kimchi gimbap, please.”
They had gone up by a full 500 won not long ago, making them 2,500 won each. Even the basic gimbap that had once cost the standard 1,000 won was gone now.
‘Prices are insane.’
Clicking his tongue, Jaeha got into the driver’s seat.
A little later, at Exit 1 of Gaehwa Station, Lee Minho, wearing jeans and a black padded jacket, spotted Jaeha’s old SUV and waved.
“Boss! Over here!”
“Get in.”
“Thank you, boss!”
His eyes were sunken as he climbed into the passenger seat. It was only natural after months of living with his days and nights reversed.
“It’ll still take thirty minutes to get there, so get some sleep. Like that guy snoring in the back.”
In the rearview mirror, Jaeha saw Jaeseong headbanging violently in his sleep.
“No! I slept great!”
Since he said he was fine, Jaeha did not press the matter.
Lee Minho kept covering his mouth to yawn, then, perhaps to drive away sleep, spoke to Jaeha.
“Boss, I have something I’m curious about.”
“Sure. Go ahead.”
Jaeha answered without taking his eyes off the road.
“Word’s gotten around from TechPark’s stream, and our Aegis Cases are selling out everywhere. But I’m a little worried.”
“Worried?”
“Yes. The plain cases we make into Aegis Cases come from another factory, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Wouldn’t it be a huge problem if they started throwing their weight around? Like, ‘We hear you’ve been raking it in with our products. Double the material price from now on!’ Or what if they legally challenged us, saying their cases were the originals? Honestly... they look identical on the outside.”
Jaeha let out a quiet snort.
The thing Minho was worried about was rather cute. Still, he could understand why he thought that way. Lee Minho had devoted himself to civil service exams, far removed from worldly affairs.
“To get straight to the point, there isn’t even a one percent chance of that happening.”
“I-is that so? But if they cut off our supply, wouldn’t we be unable to make Aegis Cases?”
“Minho, you know how clothing stores sell sweatshirts with cute characters or logos on them?”
“Yes.”
“Do you think every brand owner selling those clothes spins thread, weaves fabric, and makes the clothes personally?”
“Uh... I don’t think so.”
“Right. They get plain shirts with no designs from wholesalers, then put on their own logos and brand tags before selling them. It’s secondary processing.”
Jaeha turned the wheel at an intersection and continued.
“When a brand becomes a huge hit, do you think the manufacturer that made the plain shirts can charge only that brand more for materials?”
“Ah! I don’t think they can.”
“Aegis Cases are the same. We get plastic canvases from the factory, then use Valence’s proprietary technology to paint the picture called Aegis on them.”
Lee Minho opened his mouth in understanding and nodded enthusiastically.
“Canvas and picture. I get it completely now!”
“Of course, once they see our business doing well, they might test the waters and try to quietly raise the price of the canvases. Like, ‘Where else are you going to get your products if not from us?’”
“Whoa. Wouldn’t that really be a huge problem?”
Jaeha’s gaze turned cold.
“It’s not a problem. There are countless factories making plain cases. It would just become a little troublesome.”
“Troublesome? Why?”
“We’d have to adjust all the current machine settings. It would cost me time and trouble, and there would be losses from halted production, but nothing serious enough to shake the business.”
For some reason, Lee Minho shuddered at the chill he felt.
The car grew quiet again.
Maybe it was the warm air from the heater. Lee Minho kept blinking to fight off sleep, but eventually his eyelids fell shut.
At the sound of snoring from beside and behind him, ringing out like harmony, Jaeha chuckled.
The conversation with Lee Minho naturally led his thoughts to the raw-material supplier.
The company currently supplying Valence with plain cases was a well-established small but mighty business that had once supplied plastic phone cases to Oh-seong Electronics and LC Electronics.
It had the technical ability to handle major corporation orders, so its quality was beyond doubt.
Right after TechPark’s livestream, the first thing Jaeha had done was call the company’s sales representative.
“Sir! Twice the previous order volume? Congratulations on your booming business!”
Jaeha had also asked whether there would be any supply issues if they expanded their facilities and increased the order volume considerably.
“Oh, it could increase even more? Don’t you worry one bit! Just place the order, and we’ll supply you even if we have to set up a dedicated line just for you! Hahaha!”
The representative’s reaction over the phone had been utterly overexcited.
‘First, I’ll handle the container contract this morning. Then I’ll teach Minho how to use the machine. Oh, and I need to order more cases.’
As he sorted out the day’s major tasks, Jaeha gently pressed the accelerator.
Before long, they arrived at Valence’s factory.
“All right, we’re here. Let’s have some coffee before we start work.”
“Yes, boss.”
The three of them blew on hot instant coffee in the middle of winter, then got down to work.
Just having one more person to help with odd jobs like packing boxes and attaching shipping labels made Jaeha feel like he could breathe a little easier.
Two hours later...
“Then I’ll be back.”
“See you later, boss!”
“Hyung, pick the container with the cleanest bathroom! Oh, and drive safely!”
Escorted by the two of them, Jaeha set off to sign the container contract.
Soon, he arrived at the Jeil Container storage yard. The containers were in fairly good condition overall. Jaeha chose four that looked the cleanest and best insulated.
“These are good. I’ll sign the contract right away. When can they be delivered? The sooner, the better.”
The containers needed to arrive and be positioned at least three days before the machines ordered from Guro came in, so he could finish the electrical work and everything else.
“Since Gwangsu-hyung referred you, we’ll make it happen no matter what. We’ll ship them out the day after tomorrow.”
“Thank you. I appreciate it.”
After wrapping up the deal neatly, Jaeha got back into his car. Before starting it, he called President Choi Gwangsu.
“Hey, President Kim! What’s up?”
“I just finished signing the container contract. Thanks to your introduction, I got good containers at a low price. Thank you.”
“Hahaha, it was nothing. Buy me a meal sometime.”
“A meal wouldn’t be enough. I’ll properly treat you when you have time soon.”
After exchanging a few more pleasant words, Jaeha ended the call and started the car.
Everything was clicking together like gears. Holding the steering wheel, he lightly tapped his fingers along to the singer known as the Nation’s Little Sister hitting three soaring high notes on the radio.
“I’m back.”
“Welcome back, boss!”
“Good work, hyung. Did you pick good containers?”
“Yeah. They were all in good condition. They’re coming the day after tomorrow. But we’ll need to call an electrician for some wiring work too.”
“Ah, I hope we can use them soon. The bathroom is so inconvenient. You too, Minho-hyung, right?”
While Jaeha had been out on business, Jaeseong apparently decided to drop formalities with Lee Minho.
“Ah, yes, no, uh, yeah...”
Lee Minho trailed off, unsure whether he could speak casually to Jaeha’s younger brother in front of the boss.
Jaeha immediately stepped in to sort things out.
“You can be comfortable around that guy. He’s not a Valence employee.”
“Ah, hyung! I’m not an employee?”
“Not yet.”
“Wow.”
“Once you graduate and sign an employment contract.”
“Wow. That’s so harsh.”
“You’re going back to school next month. Enough. Switch with Minho and take over what he was doing. Minho, come learn how to operate the machine from me.”
Jaeha stood Lee Minho in front of the machine, took a plain case from a box, and inspected it from every angle.
“Don’t just feed them into the machine. You have to do a first visual inspection. This one is clean, right? Then place it on the conveyor jig and press the green button.”
Click. Whirr. Clunk.
As the case was drawn into the machine, the heavy chamber door closed without a gap. The muted sounds of the process echoed from within the perfectly sealed machine.
Hiss. Flash!
Whoosh!
There was a burst of light, followed by the brief sound of a powerful exhaust pulling air through the machine. A moment later, the door opened, and the completed Aegis Case came out. Jaeha picked it up and inspected it carefully again.
“You can’t put it straight into the box after it comes out, either. You must do a second inspection. It could have warped inside the chamber. If it warps, stop the machine immediately. The cartridge in the chamber needs to be replaced. Call me no matter what.”
“A cartridge?”
“It holds the black box, Valence’s core secret and the secret behind this process. Don’t ever try to open it. The security system will burn everything inside black if you force it open. I’ll say it again. Never touch it. It could explode.”
“Gah! Yes! I’ll never touch it.”
Lee Minho swallowed hard, thoroughly tense from Jaeha’s warning.
“You don’t need to worry too much. As long as you don’t try to open the black box, there is absolutely no chance it will explode.”
Jaeha pointed at an opaque plastic container.
“When that gauge drops into the red, an alarm will sound. Then you need to replace the entire carbon nano-dispersion cartridge. It’s just like changing printer ink. Just fit it into the slot until you hear a click.”
Holding up the perfectly sealed plastic cartridge, which looked like an ink cartridge, Jaeha cautioned him again.
“Never force the cartridge cap open or try to pour in the liquid directly. Air can clog the spray nozzle, and the concentrate isn’t good for your lungs if it gets into the air. Always replace the whole sealed container. Remember that.”
“Yes!”
“Compared to picking bones out of tuna at a cannery, this is nothing. Anyone can do it once they get used to it. I’m planning to hire part-timers soon, too. Go ahead and try it yourself.”
“Understood!”
Lee Minho rolled up his sleeves and stood in front of the machine.
First inspection of the case. Feed it into the machine. Press the button.
Second inspection of the finished product. Put it in the box.
Then back to the beginning.
At first, he fumbled, unable to keep pace with the one-minute rhythm. Before long, though, he got the hang of it and began moving with a mechanical rhythm.
Clunk, hiss, flash!
Jaeha watched Lee Minho become one with the machine and nodded in satisfaction.
Then came lunchtime.
“Delivery!”
Jaeha took out three bowls of fried rice delivered from the Chinese takeout restaurant and looked at Lee Minho.
His eyes had lost focus and gone hazy. His face looked like half his soul had left home, but his arms continued moving at a precise tempo without the slightest error.
Lift, inspect, insert, press...
“...Minho?”
When Jaeha approached and tapped his shoulder, Lee Minho jolted and blinked his hollow eyes.
“Uh, what? Boss?”
“The food’s here. Let’s eat first.”
“Ah! Yes.”
As Jaeseong peeled the plastic wrap off the bowls, he grinned at Lee Minho.
“Minho-hyung, was it manageable?”
“Yeah. But... somehow, it feels like my brain is melting. I’m hearing things. Clunk, hiss, flash. Clunk, hiss, flash...”
“Exactly. There’s no torture like it. I feel like Charlie Chaplin in Modern Times. Hehehe.”
Jaeseong mimed a scene from the movie, tightening nuts onto bolts, before suddenly looking at Jaeha.
“Hyung, can’t you improve that thing? Instead of doing them one by one, wouldn’t it be way easier if we could just dump in a whole box at once?”
“That’s impossible for now.”
“Why?”
“Because we don’t have the money.”
“Ah...”
“I will improve it. It really is inefficient. You’ll be at school by then, though.”
“Tch.”
“Just eat.”
Jaeha wolfed down his fried rice, then used attaching shipping labels to parcels as his digestion exercise before sitting in front of the computer.
‘Oh, right. I need to order cases.’
He picked up his phone to call the supplier’s sales representative, but after seeing the time on the screen, quietly put it back down.
It was still lunchtime. Deciding to wait until after one o’clock to place the order out of business courtesy, he took hold of the mouse.
He logged into the G-Mall Seller Center website and entered his ID and password. The loading screen passed, revealing the main dashboard.
[Product inquiries: 1,136]
[Shipping inquiries: 587]
[Cancellation inquiries: 73]
[Exchange/return inquiries: 12]
[Payment inquiries: 41]
[Other inquiries: 158]
[Total unanswered inquiries: 2,007]
“Haah...”
A sigh escaped Jaeha’s lips.
The horrifying number glowed red in the center of the monitor, enough to make him dizzy just looking at it. It was a terrible customer-service hell.
‘Park Mijeong is the first interview today, right?’
Please let her be an excellent person who could save him from this hell. Jaeha repeated the thought countless times.
Just then...
“Hello? Is anyone here?”
A clear voice came from the factory entrance.
It was Park Mijeong, the office-job applicant he had spoken with on the phone yesterday. Jaeha checked the time.
12:55 p.m.
The interview had originally been scheduled for two.
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